Posted on 10/27/2009 11:10:17 AM PDT by jazusamo
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) said Tuesday that he’d back a GOP filibuster of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s health care reform bill.
Lieberman, who caucuses with Democrats and is positioning himself as a fiscal hawk on the issue, said he opposes any health care bill that includes a government-run insurance program — even if it includes a provision allowing states to opt out of the program, as Reid’s has said the Senate bill will.
"We're trying to do too much at once," Lieberman said. “To put this government-created insurance company on top of everything else is just asking for trouble for the taxpayers, for the premium payers and for the national debt. I don’t think we need it now."
Lieberman added that he’d vote against a public option plan “even with an opt-out because it still creates a whole new government entitlement program for which taxpayers will be on the line."
His comments confirmed that Reid is short of the 60 votes needed to advance the bill out of the Senate, even after Reid included the opt-out provision. Several other moderate Democrats expressed skepticism at the proposal as well, but most of the wavering Democratic senators did not go as far as Lieberman Tuesday, saying they were waiting to see the details.
Lieberman did say he's "strongly inclined" to vote to proceed to the debate, but that he’ll ultimately vote to block a floor vote on the bill if it isn’t changed first.
"I've told Sen. Reid that if the bill stays as it is now I will vote against cloture,” he said.
“I can’t see a way in which I could vote for cloture on any bill that contained a creation of a government-operated-run insurance company,” Lieberman added. “It’s just asking for trouble – in the end, the taxpayers are going to pay and probably all people will have health insurance are going to see their premiums go up because there’s going to be cost shifting as there has been for Medicare and Medicaid.”
Lieberman said he “very much” wants to vote for health care reform but that he’s worried about stifling “the economic recovery we’re in” or adding to the federal debt.
“I feel this way about a national, government-created health insurance company – whether it’s a trigger or not,” he said. “My answer is – we’re – we have the opportunity to do some great reforms here. These exchanges that we’re talking about, I think, are going to drive competition and probably bring the cost of health insurance down or at least contain the cost increases for a lot of people. Let’s give that two or three years to see how it works to see how it works before we talk about creating another entitlement that will end up increasing the national debt and putting more of a burden on taxpayers.”
There will be a few more.
A question, as an aside - if you’re not allowed to opt out of the public option, as Democrats don’t want you to be able to do, then how could the public option be about “competition,” which implies that it would be one from among many options available to us?
well do we have any kind of count? Do we have 40? 41? who will vote our way and stop it?
Payback for the Dems dissing him in 2006.
States can opt out of unemployment insurance too. All the employers in the state still have to pay the tax though.
yep. yet another inconsistency nicely articulated
Have the other two Amigo’s announce their intent yet?
If it’s about “competition” there would be no taxpayer money involved.
This is about power.
We don’t need it now. We don’t need it ever! We need to get the gov’t out of the healthcare all together.
Collins is against it as well. That’s not 60. When you hit your knees tonight, give thanks for Harry Reid. Only he could have messed something this solid up.
Well said, a very good question.
It was very difficult for me to vote for Lieberman. It was necessary to do so to keep the very liberal Ned Lamont out of office (if you recall, the republican challenger was non-existant in the polls).
Every now and then, like now, I feel better about it.
Absolutely, kill the bills.
For every defecting Democrat or Independent they must pick up one Republican.
As liberal as he is on most issues, other than defense, he at least is principled. That can’t be said for the rest of the Senate. Thank you, Senator Lieberman.
He is more supportive of the Republicans than some Republicans (Snowe, Collins, and previous Republican, SPECTRE).
It’s a scam...if all states have to “opt out” that already means that people (everyone) will still be paying in.(all people in all states). If you’re paying in then you’ll want to be in therefore no one paying for public plans. Sneaky word playing ba$tards!
Also, I am sure the government will pull away any funding for those “nasty” states that opt out!
Ditto. But remember he waffled on Clinton impeachment aftering agreeing the charges were correct. Beware - old Joe can roll both ways.
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